


Come Home, Tubbo

by MadKiska



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft - Fandom, Sleepy Bois Inc, mcyt
Genre: Everyone lives, Happy Ending, generally.. an angst simulator, goatdad moments, in which there are no bad guys, no realtionships, only misunderstandings :), tubbo angst simulator
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-05
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:35:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,861
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26828233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadKiska/pseuds/MadKiska
Summary: On a mission to sneak into the Whitehouse, Pogtopia find a long lost friend. Only.. He doesn't recognise them at all.Big thanks to reylink and Ashe for helping me and keeping me motivated! <3Alternate title: tubbo gets hurt but its ok asmrAlternate alternate title: filled with nothing but being morally grey
Comments: 109
Kudos: 683





	Come Home, Tubbo

**Author's Note:**

> Written deviating from canon after the day of the election.

From our perspective, things are fast. In reality, potatoes take about three months to grow. In reality, it takes a while to refine iron and bend it into the shape of armour. In reality, it takes years to hone skills enough to fight. 

In reality, it's been a very long time.

They're not ready.

They need to strike before it's too late.

Tommy is a grown man. Wilbur has his first grey hairs from pure stress. Techno is tired. Just tired.

They were just children when they left. Even Wilbur, the founder of a nation, was still relatively young.

-

Strike at night. The cover of darkness and the still of sleeping guards.

They take out the few patrolling with swiftness and ease, and sneak within the walls of the president's home.

One is still awake.

Tommy freezes, but the soldier doesn't hesitate. He knocks Tommy down and holds him at sword tip - the threat upon the young man's neck being the only thing stopping the other two from jumping forwards.

They recognised each other's eyes, but one was scared and scared so different than before, and the other had been slowly brainwashed since the day everything went wrong.

"Who the fuck do you think you are?"

Tommy feels his eyes well up. He can't speak for fear of sobbing. Wilbur speaks for him. "Tubbo..?"

"Wh-" the soldier growls and presses the blade closer. "How do you know that?! Who are you?!"

"It's me," his brother whispers, "It's me. It's Tommy."

There's a split second, but, with a glare, he spat: "I don’t know anyone called 'Tommy'."

Tubbo recognises them faintly from wanted posters. Dead or alive. And alive would only be so Schlatt had the pleasure of killing them himself.

The traitor looks up at him with pitiful, watery eyes. An expression of hope that he doesn't understand. He says his name, but Tubbo doesn’t care. Those posters are background noise. He has a nation to care for.

He growls under his breath, meeting each stranger's worried expression. He draws a breath. They freeze.

"INTRUDERS!"

His split second of weakness was all they needed. One lunged forwards, their blades meeting together. The battle lasts but a few seconds before the attacker gets a clear shot, and hits Tubbo upside the head, knocking him clean out.

-

The damp hits him first. Then the dark, filled with artificial light. It's not night - there are no stars above or air to feel on your skin. No, he's underground. Somewhere hidden. Somewhere bad.

The man is waiting. The one who knocked him out. He watches as tubbo shifts, feeling the ropes binding him to the chair.

He studies the man's face. He doesn't look quite human.

"You really don't remember me, do you?"

At the lack of response, he just nods, and leaves the dank room.

Next, the second man appears. Taller but not as honed into fighting. He asks several questions but Tubbo refuses to answer any. Eyes straight, lips sealed. Just as he had been taught.

Last, the boy. The one his age who had looked so desperate.

The boy doesn't ask anything.

All he does is meet Tubbo's eyes and cry.

For a moment, Tubbo feels just a little bad that he can't remember a thing.

-

When Tubbo is released from the ropes, it's when he's pushed into a small cell and stripped of most of his uniform. It's clear the small prison was built without the real thought of it ever being used. He was met with water, bread, and a rather good looking baked potato inside.

He didn't touch it.

Instead, he sat. He took in the ravine around him and watched the three leave. They were calmer now, but they had such an air of mourning that he just couldn't understand.

They talk in hushed voices. Tubbo was originally going to go on a hunger strike, but he couldn't help but feel like the last thing the food would be was poisoned. They watch him when they think he isn't looking. They view him with pity. Why? Why pity?

-

Tommy leans against the bars one morning. He doesn't say hello, he doesn't even announce himself. He just sits.

".. You realise there are plenty of things in here that I could hit you over the head with, right?"

Tommy shrugs. "Ok."

He frowns, watching for any kind of sudden movement or suspicion. ".. Why are you here?"

"I wanted to sit with you."

The answer was not one he expected. ".. Oh."

"Yeah."

Tubbo hesitates. He's been here for a week now and all they try to do is talk. Not to be something or find out information. They just try to talk to him.

Cautiously, he lowers himself. He sits on the other side of the bars, his back against Tommy's on the other side. They breathe in sync for a moment. They just exist together.

Tubbo feels a lump in his throat and stands back up. It was but a moment, but it was a moment of progress, and they both know it.

-

'Techno' brings him his meals. Tubbo overheard that he's the one who farms, too. But also the one who teaches them how to fight. And how to defend themselves. This man is the rebellion in himself and he only showed up after Schlatt won. Why the hell didn't he get roped in after the first fight? How was _Dream_ an easier fight than Schlatt?

"Why?" He asked one day.

The man paused. He really didn't look quite human. It confused him. There were others in the world with non-human features but this was something else. Was he magic? Techno raised an eyebrow, voice deadpan. "Why what?"

"Why're you here?"

".. Well, you need to eat, unless that's something you forgot to tell us."

Tubbo huffed, meeting his eyes with a glare. "No. Why are you _here_. Helping them."

"What can I say, I'm a fan of anarchy."

He wanted to doubt it. It wasn't a good reason, it wasn't even a reason that made sense - all those traitors wanted was to become president and vice president again which is the opposite of anarchy - but.. He found himself believing it. He didn't know this man at all but he somehow knew that this was the complete truth.

In the end, Tubbo simply snarled under his breath and turned away, leaving the other to shrug and leave.

-

"I'm telling you," Tommy's voice was desperate. They were just out of sight, but Tubbo could still hear them. They'd tried to keep their voices soft, but tensions were building. So volume was building. "Wil, I'm telling you, he's- he's-"

"Shut it, Tommy." Wilbur's voice is harsh. "It's been two weeks and nothing's happened. He doesn't recognise you and he won't recognise you, and we need information."

Techno's voice is the only one that hasn't risen with anger. "I can't help but feel like this is a bit harsh, he's still your brother-."

"We were there and we would have won if it weren't for him! We would have been able to go home! What, so it's ok for me to hate Fundy, but suddenly because you two care for Tubbo too I can't-"

"Fundy?"

Tubbo didn't realise he'd spoken aloud. The name of his friend had taken him by surprise. The last thing he expected these three to talk about was Fundy.

"Told you he could hear us," Techno murmured.

There were a few seconds of silence. Then, quickly, the traitor appeared in front of the bars. Tubbo glanced up to meet his eyes.

"How much did you hear?"

"Pretty much all of it, not gonna lie."

Wilbur glanced him over. There were several seconds of silence. Then, with an expression Tubbo hadn't seen before, he asked gently, "Why were you so surprised I mentioned Fundy?"

Tubbo swallowed, looking up at the leader. ".. I just didn't expect you to."

"Why not?"

"Well- he's just an artilleryman! He's been stationed on the border with Dream for weeks and hasn't reported back since he left, he's just-" He paused. "He's just really not someone.. Important. I wouldn't expect the former president and a traitor to have anything to do with him.”

Wilbur was silent for a solid few seconds, then turned and left without another word.

-

They sat back-to-back again. Tommy split his sandwich and the two were eating in silence. Tommy still hadn't gotten an answer about why Wilbur cared so much, but he didn't think he minded. It had only been a day.

"Meal without any potatoes? What's going on out there?"

Tommy snorted. "Don't even. It's been like this since you left."

He smirked for a moment before his face fell to thought. He fiddled with a crumb between his fingers.

".. Who was I?" 

The question took the traitor by surprise. Tubbo felt his breath be drawn through the gaps in the bars against him.

"Like -" Tubbo fumbled over his words. "- Not that I will believe you, but I’m just- I'm curious as to who you think-"

“My brother."

"... Like.. Metaphorically or literally?"

"Literally. we're twins." He chuckled softly. "Wil and Techno are twins too. Our older brothers."

".. Oh."

"So.. Why did Wil care so much about Fundy of all people?"

Wil. He's picked it up from Tommy over the days. It feels a little too familiar on his tongue.

Tommy looked down, falling quiet. He was inside the cell this time, but Techno was nearby sewing together a quiver. Just to keep an eye on things.

".. That's his son," Tommy answered softly. "Fundy's his son."

Tubbo's eyes widen with realisation for a moment before he looks away, down at the bed beneath them both. "Fundy never said." he shrugged. "Then again, Schlatt said never to talk to him, soo.."

"Schlatt's a bastard."

He feels something jerk inside. Something in his chest that he doesn't quite understand. ".. No, he's not."

Tommy just huffs. "He really is."

"He's not."

"... Whatever."

Tubbo glared at him for a moment. He could feel the tension in the air. He felt a growl in his throat, but he pushed it down, and glared away at the floor.

-

Tommy stayed away for the rest of the day after he left. Tubbo had to admit, he was glad. Schlatt wasn't a bad guy - he was trying his best! He was the best president so far! Wilbur Soot was a traitor, a drug dealer! He used child soldiers! He was horrible!

When Schlatt came into power, he kept Tubbo on, yes, but on the hours that a 16 year old should work. Hell, he was more of an apprentice, a trainee, than anything else. He wasn't a soldier. He was a child. And he was protected from what Wilbur would have done to him.

And - on top of that - to learn that Wilbur was his brother? He felt disgusted, honestly, that he was related to such a person. Not only that, but the fact that Fundy was his son? And Fundy fought too? Fundy looked like an adult, but that was probably just because he was part fox, right? Fundy was younger than him? And he fought?

.. Tubbo couldn't remember the war. He was told about it, about how he fought and how the former president used him. Schlatt didn't use their names. He didn't like to hear them. Tubbo was curious, but he also figured that if he didn't know them, he could never slip up and say them to Schlatt's face. He wouldn't be in trouble, yes, but...

Whatever.

He kicked away the blankets and flopped down into the bed.

-

Tommy waited for him to be awake. Tubbo knew. Mainly because he'd been pretending to still be asleep for a while, watching them go about their mornings.

It was unnerving.

He pushed himself up, took a breath, and waited.

Tommy sighed to himself to psyche himself up for the conversation.

"Hey, Tubbo?"

He glanced over his shoulder. He didn't say anything. Tommy knew he was listening.

"Listen, about yesterday.."

"What about it?"

He swallowed. "I.. Listen, I know you're.. Close. But Schlatt-" Tommy was met with a glare. He froze for a second before continuing. "He's not good, Tubbo. He's really not. He- he hurts people, he hurts you! For god's sake, he hurt you. You don't even remember us! You're- you're.."

Tubbo is quiet for a second. He glances away at the brick, then looks to Tommy again. "And Wilbur used literal children to fight a war for nothing but his own gain."

Silence.

".. Tubbo-"

"He's a tyrant. He's disgusting. He's selfish and- and-" He can't find any more words. He hates it. He hates being here. He hates having to play nice with this man. "I'm not going to pretend to change my opinions just because you claim we're related."

Silence.

"... I get it." Tommy takes a step back. "I get it."

-

They both realised that they got along better when neither Schlatt nor Wilbur came up in conversation. Tubbo could deal enough with talking to the ex-president in short bursts, but that was about it.

They ate every meal together. Once for lunch it was all four, sitting in silence. A memory of a better time.

-

Today they stood in the grass. Sunlight, finally. The wind in his hair and the scent of the forest in his nose. He turned with a smile.

Three stood upon the training ground. Techno to one side, watching the other two. At the end of the day, Tubbo still couldn't quite be trusted. But he had also been down there for so long in one room. He needed this.

Tubbo swung the training sword with a happy sigh, getting a feel for the weight of it as he met Tommy's eyes. The swords were completely blunt, but could bruise badly or even fracture if not used wisely.

"You ready, big man?"

"Ready as I'll ever be."

Tommy holds himself like a trained professional - his sword in a good position to parry, block, attack; his feet light and ready to bounce to either side.

Tubbo is stood like a child with a cool stick. His arms are by his side and his stance is as if he's waiting in line, bored.

But Tommy lunges, and his brother parries, sidesteps, and kicks him down in one smooth motion.

He's face down in the grass and Tubbo just raised an eyebrow.

"Wh- what the fuck?" He laughs, pushing himself up and looking back. Tubbo laughs.

"Round two, 'big man'?"

"Oho~" Tommy prepares himself. "We never finished round one."

-

A fight is a dance with a chance of blood.

Tommy is trained well by techno himself, and has had years of practise. He holds the sword as he should and fights as he should.

Tubbo fights as if the sword is an extension of his arm. He skips around the attacks as if he's made of cloud. If Tommy gets one hit, he gets ten. If. It's mainly a case of Tubbo tripping him up or dodging out of the way and making Tommy lose balance.

He pushes himself up with a grunt. "When the hell did you get so good?"

Tubbo spins the training sword in his hand, a grin on his face. It feels good to finally stretch his muscles again. "When didn't you?"

"Oi." Tommy picks up his own. "I'm good."

"You haven't won once."

"I've come pretty close, you gotta admit."

"Sure," Tubbo answers with a smirk that screams 'you really haven't'.

Just before they go to start again, they're interrupted by a cough.

They look up.

Techno raises his eyebrow. "May I?"

Tubbo blinks, sharing a glance with Tommy before nodding and holding out his sword. "Sure?"

"No, no." He steps forwards to take Tommy's place, picking up another blunted sword from the pile. "I'm fighting you."

".. Oh."

Both Tubbo and Tommy are surprised, but Techno takes position, leaving the brother to watch.

-

Swords clash. Techno is used to people who know how to fight - heck, he fights them for a living - so he knows this dance.

What he doesn't know is how Tubbo dodges. He slips to one side without even parrying as if it's nothing.

A fight against Technoblade doesn't last this long.

There's a first for everything.

They dance around each other - slashing, blocking, ducking, weaving, bobbing, sliding, jumping. Tubbo would be tripped only to slide in the dirt and attack the legs. Techno would be parried aside only to spin and bring his sword down at Tubbo's shoulder.

Both break a sweat.

Neither slow.

A strike to the side of the ribs and Tubbo stumbles. Things are looking bad for just a moment before they strike each other again. They dance for just a few more moments, then-

Tubbo's sword is shoved aside, and the tip of Techno's is pressed against his adam's apple.

"I let you win," Tubbo murmurs with a grin.

Techno is silent for several moments. He lowers his sword and stabs it into the ground.

"I know."

Techno hides his feelings well, but one thing that will never change is that a victory gifted is no victory at all.

He huffs, scoops up Tubbo's dropped sword, and shoves it into his hand.

"Only fall back on to your heels if you need a sharp turn. A proper defence shouldn't see you falling back." He yanks his own out of the dirt and steps back. "Again."

Tommy is speechless for once as Tubbo doesn't even question it. All he does is give techno a heartbeat to prepare before launching into another attack.

"Keep your hand high on the hilt."

"Straight back when attacked from higher angles."

"Keep your leg muscles loose."

"Never hold your breath."

"Use your environment to your advantage."

The battle doesn't stop as he speaks. Tubbo takes it in stride and adapts instantly. Not only that, but he adapts to Techno's fighting style an impressive amount.

The man dodges to the sides to throw off the other's aim and to get a hit in the unprotected spots, he attacks in merciless onslaughts from the front, he uses his environment to get the other's blade to hit the obstacles.

Tubbo keeps them in the open. He keeps his stance narrow but feet apart to allow for both stability from the front and tight turns.

Techno fights like fire while Tubbo fights like desperation itself.

They fall apart this time without any sign of who will win. They simply catch their breath, knowing the other won't attack.

"Decent," Techno murmurs. 

"If I'm only decent then you're pretty shit."

He smirks, a laugh behind his lips. "We're both pretty decent."

-

"Wilbur, you don't understand. If he wanted to go then he would have."

"Seriously, Wil, I saw it. He almost won-"

"He let me win-"

"I don't care. The prison stays locked."

-

Tubbo's muscles ached after so long of not using them in such a way, but it felt good. He made a mental note to do more exercise while stuck in there.

Tommy visited more and more often, even to the point of getting told off for not doing the work he needed to.

Three days after the fight. The ravine was empty and lonely and quiet.

Wilbur stood at the bars.

"What are you doing here?"

".... Being a prisoner?"

He glared. "They told me what happened. The training session. I know you can leave whenever you want. So why aren't you, Tubbo?"

"What, am I meant to? Did I miss a memo? An order from the amazing President Soot~?"

"I'm being serious, here-"

"And so am I." Tubbo doesn't bother standing up from his bed. Wilbur isn't worth it. "If I could, I would."

"You can."

"Thanks for the news."

They stare each other down for several seconds. A silent dare going both ways.

"Where is Fundy stationed specifically?"

"How would I know?"

"Westside, northside?"

"I don't know."

"Surely you do."

Tubbo feels himself about to break. "I'm sorry for not stalking the movements of some dumb fox cub."

Glares. Silent.

Wilbur turns heel and leaves. Tubbo snarls softly as he goes.

-

Tommy and Techno return the next morning. They have plenty of materials and foods that they both gathered and stolen. Wilbur greets them thankfully at the entrance and helps them down with it all. But when they reach the bottom they notice something wrong.

None of them see it at first, they simply feel something's wrong with the ravine.

Then Techno spots it.

"Guys," he says, in a matter-of-fact tone. "He got out."

Frozen panic fills the other two for very different reasons.

"Hi~!"

They look up to see him sitting on a beam far up in the ravine, fiddling with the light that hung off of it.

"And what do you think you're doing?" Wilbur sounds too much like an angered father.

"It was flickering and annoying me." Tubbo smirks down at them. "I'll go back after. Promise."

-

Wilbur had locked him back in the cell. He didn't care, all four knew he could get back out if he tried.

He and Tommy sat back to back. Feeling their shoulders touch through the bars, enjoying the feeling of someone to rely on.

"You could break out this whole time?" Tommy asks, his voice soft and tired.

"I guess." Tubbo leans his head back. "Gonna be completely honest, me and Wil had this 'talk' where he basically dared me to."

Tommy chuckles, feeling his eyes drift closed. “Yeah. Sounds about right."

Techno comes later on. Tubbo expects him to carry the sleeping brother off to bed, and in a way he's right. 

But Techno unlocks the door and lays Tommy on the bed inside. Neither say a word as the older brother leaves.

Tubbo curls up next to his twin.

He hasn't slept that well in years.

-

It's become a running gag. He'd stay in the cell, yeah, but he'd regularly just open the doors for no reason, go and sit outside for no reason, just walk around or join conversations. Tommy found it hilarious. Techno didn't really show.. Anything, but he didn't hate it. If anything, he smirked a couple of times. Wilbur... wasn't pleased.

It was fun either way.

He and Tommy sat up on one of the beams, chatting softly and laughing together. They did this sometimes. Tommy would tell stories from their childhood which, frankly, Tubbo wouldn't always believe. But it was nice. And even if there wasn't any truth behind them, Tommy had a very creative mind, and that was fun in itself.

"And- and this one time I threw the super powerful sword off of the side 'cause you dared me and I jumped after it and I caught it and it was awesome!"

Tubbo grinned. "So we were on a floating island together, you threw the most powerful sword in the game off of the edge and leapt after it, and survived?"

"Yeah! If you hit the void you just pop back up."

"I totally believe that."

"It happened! You were there!"

Tubbo huffed, rolling his eyes. "Sure."

"You were!"

"Sure."

Tommy stuck his tongue out. "Don't blame me for what he did."

Silence. Great, he had to bring it up. He had to go ahead and be a sarcastic little shit, as Wil always told him off for, and now Tubbo was angry.

".. He didn't do anything."

"For fuck's sake, Tubbo.."

"What?!" He sat up. "You're just assuming everything! You never even let me talk or argue my side or- or-"

"He kicked us out of our home! The nation we created! Wilbur could have forged the votes but he let Schlatt win and in return he exiled us! He branded us as traitors when we did nothing wrong!"

"All Manberg knew under Wilbur was war and fear. It's now a great nation where the capital is at peace and the people are thriving!"

"It's _L'Manberg_ and it's being ruled by a disgusting tyrant!"

"WILBUR IS A DRUG DEALER, A THIEF, AND A WAR CRIMINAL!"

"AND SCHLATT IS A MANIPULATIVE, HALF-CRAZY PIECE OF SHIT!"

"ALL YOU KNOW IS WHAT YOU'VE BEEN TOLD! I LIVED WITH HIM, I'VE SEEN WILBUR HERE, I KNOW SCHLATT'S RIGHT!"

"HE DESTROYED MY HOME!"

"FOR A GOOD REASON!"

They glared right at each other. Their voices had raised to the level that Techno and Wil, down on the floor of the ravine, had fallen quiet and were watching.

"You've lost it, Tubbo. He really fucking destroyed you."

"At least I can form my opinions without bias."

"No bias?! Are you kidding me?! You practically view him as a god!"

"And you don't for Wil and Techno?"

Tommy growled softly. "I don't. I really don't."

"Sure, tell yourself that. What would you do without them? Without them holding your hand through every decision?"

"I'm a grown man, I can-"

"Tommy." They both look over. Wilbur stood far below, expression blank. "Stop arguing with him and get down here."

Tubbo raises an eyebrow and looks back to his twin. "Big bro's calling~."

Tommy glares for a moment, silently thinking through his options. He pushes himself up and starts his way down to Wilbur.

-

They're aboveground again. Techno's forced Wilbur to come up for some fresh air. It's reluctant, but he knows he needs it. 

The argument has been mostly forgotten. They're stood now with their training swords once more. It's nice to fight in such a way without the threat of being hurt or being told off by the person you're training under. Just harmless fun, like when they were kids. Not that Tubbo would know that.

But they're interrupted.

A person in the bushes, fighting his way through. All four freeze, ready to launch into battle.

Tubbo's grip tightens around the handle, but the other three simply pause.

Wilbur's voice is but a breath. ".. Dad?"

Dad?

Tommy sprints forwards, dropping the blade and launching at the man, wrapping him in a tight hug.

"Wh.. Why are you..?" Wilbur steps closer, too, in awe for just a moment before he gets tugged in to the hug, too.

"Tommy stole your communicator again," Phil smiled, ruffling his son's hair. "He said everything was fine but I could tell something was up. He never types like that."

Techno smirked lightly, "So you decided to just show up?"

"Eh, why not?" He grinned and pulled away, looking at them all. "You've all grown so much. So tall!"

"I'm taller than Techno, now!" Tommy boasted loudly, even though Techno was right there and noticeably taller.

Phil laughed gently, looking up to the older brother with a smile before seeing Tubbo standing a few paces away. He extended his arm, but Tubbo stepped back. He raised his sword.

Phil frowns.

"... We should talk, dad," Techno murmurs.

-

"He's our father," Tommy explains softly. They were sat a short distance away from where Techno and Wilbur were talking their father through the whole timeline.

"I gathered that much."

"I haven't seen him since we got there, actually." He hums, his legs swinging. "Talked a few times, but not actually seen."

".. How long have you been here?"

"Oh, a good few years." Tommy shrugs. "Techno only arrived a couple years ago, though."

Tubbo gave a small nod, thinking it through. He was overhearing a few words. War, Dream, election, Schlatt, war. That was pretty much the entire thing summed up.

"So.. Your dad just abandoned his children to fight a war while he did.. What exactly?"

"Did some hardcore, probably."

Tubbo was frowning lightly, but he nods. "So you guys fought a war and dealt drugs while daddy had a vacation."

Tommy pauses, glancing over at him. There was quiet between the two for a few seconds.

"He's gonna want to talk to you, Big T."

Tubbo sighs. "It feels like everyone does."

-

Phil was told everything, but he still seems surprised when Tubbo returns to the cell to sleep. Techno gives Phil his bed and he in turn takes the night watch. It's tiring travelling between worlds.

"Hey, kiddo."

Tubbo looks up, tilting his head a little. He's eating a lone and plain baked potato for breakfast. He's gone past the point of being sick of them. "... Hi."

"Uh.." He sits himself on the chair that's been set just outside the bars. "I talked with the other guys.'' There's a moment of quiet. Phil's clearly waiting for something to be said, but.. He's not going to. A soft cough. "So.. you don't know me, do you?"

"Nope."

"Yeah." He hummed, thinking. "Well, I'm your Dad."

"You say I am."

Phil pauses. ".. I mean, there isn't really anything I can do to definitively prove it, but I am."

Tubbo gave a little 'hm' and ate another bite of his potato as if it were an apple.

"Kid, I-"

"I'm not a kid."

".. You're my kid."

"Sure."

Phil sighed very softly. "Tubbo, a lot's happened while I've been gone. I'm gonna try my best to help. And to do that I need to understand what happened." He smiled gently. "If you're up for it, then.. I'd like to know your side of things."

It starts quiet. Tubbo needs prompting for most things he says, but very quickly it turns into a rant. About Wilbur, about how Schlatt is actually a good president, about how all he did was try to protect country, as he had for as long as he could remember, and he got fucking kidnapped. And how since that moment, all he's heard is about how Schlatt is supposedly the bad guy of history and how Wilbur's meant to be the good one when all he does is commit crimes against people and country.

Phil would just nod along, not asking anything, just listening.

"And they- they just don't even try to listen to me! They just tell me I'm wrong before I've even started talking!"

"It's ok." Phil smiles gently at him. "They're pretty caught up in it all."

"Tell me about it." Tubbo flops back against the wall.

"So, uh.. Why are you still in there?"

“Huh? Oh." He shrugs softly. "It's the only other bed here and honestly I've just gotten used to it. I don't think Wilbur bothers locking it anymore."

Phil raised an eyebrow. "You pick it every time?"

"Yeah. Quackity taught me."

"That's Schlatt's vice, right?"

"Mhm!"

"So you knew all of them?"

"Yeah!" For once he looks happy. it's nice to talk about them without being yelled at. "They're all pretty nice and really smart - Quackity taught me all the more street smart type things like picking locks and parkouring and getting through big crowds like they're nothing and staying lightfooted so you can dodge around and- and all that stuff!"

Phil nods again. It's bittersweet. His boy is big, grown, and so, so strong. But he learnt everything from people he didn't even know. And he didn't remember his own father. That hurts more, but Phil tries to push it away. He should have been there to help from the start.

Nevermatter.

What's done is done.

And now Tubbo is off rambling about something else, childlike excitement in his eyes. The kind of a young boy gushing to his father about school. So Phil smiles, and keeps listening along.

-

Tubbo likes talking to Phil. He doesn't judge, he doesn't tell him he's wrong. He just listens. If he asks, it's a question. It's an 'are you sure', not a 'shut up, you're wrong'. It's nice.

One thing he'd learn soon enough is that, even though it was learned through their own experience, his children definitely inherited their affinity for combat.

Soldiers had been spotted above ground, so today they fought below.

It feels like all they do now is train. He doesn't know about the others, but for Tubbo it helps him relax. It helps him forget everything bad and just focus on how his body's moving. 

By Phil's words, he quickly gathers the subtext that Techno's been incredible at this for a very long time. And the dad seems very unsurprised when he's knocked down within seconds.

"I didn't expect less," He jokes as he takes the hand and stands.

Technoblade smiles in that cocky way that only he can. "Tubbo, you want a go?"

There's silence for a moment, each person waiting with baited breath and Phil looking a little confused at each person's apprehension. 

"Yeah, sure."

They stand ready. He takes a moment to ask if Tubbo's ready, confused by his casual stance, only to be knocked down with the first couple of strikes.

Phil stares up at his youngest in awe. "Holy shit."

He grinned, extending his hand to help the other up. He demanded a rematch and lasted no longer than before.

"Did- did Techno teach you?"

"Nope," Techno murmurs, smirking from where he was leant against the wall.

Phil grins, stumbling a little and backing up. "You two-" He gestures to Tubbo and Techno. "- You two!"

They oblige, Techno taking the sword and taking his spot.

Phil watches with nothing but pride in his face.

Swoop, slash, dive.

Fighting in a tight, rocky area is far different than fighting in a vast grassy clearing. But somehow both men fight with the same ease, the same delicacy.

They weave and dodge and spin around each other - a mass of energy rolling and tumbling.

Tubbo dodges aside, letting the sword clang against the rocks and giving him a clear opening to kick techno directly in the ribs. Both step back for less than a heartbeat to gather their balance and their breath before they launched in again.

Blade to blade, clash after clash. To say they were evenly matched was an understatement.

They leant in close, their blades pressed together and their foreheads practically touching. At this point, either could sweep their leg under the other and knock them down easily. But there is an unspoken rule of this situation in a training situation. It's akin to an arm wrestle - it's brute strength against brute strength, push against push.

Techno grins as he slowly manages to break Tubbo's grip.

"Back to the basement for you," He purred, leaning closer, almost breaking Tubbo's balance. It's lighthearted, a joke, a game - they're in the higher section of the ravine and the cell is at the bottom.

But something snaps.

This goes from a friendly, brotherly fight to raw adrenaline.

Tubbo swings himself around and slams his fist into the side of Techno's head. The onlookers are used to seeing them play rough, but this is something else.

The man stumbles, grip loosening for a moment, giving Tubbo the opportunity to shove him down. Both drop their weapon.

Techno goes to confront him, to surrender and also ask, 'Hey, what the _fuck_ ’, but he can't. Tubbo's fingers are around his neck and he squeezes.

A nervous glance is exchanged, but quickly they realise that this isn't training. Techno physically can't get him off, he's struggling, his face is going red and his hands are pushing and his legs are scrambling-

The combined effort of tommy and Phil pry Tubbo away, who tries to sprint at Techno again like a wild animal. They drag him away, kicking and crying and crying-. Tears are streaming down his cheeks, he looks terrified.

They get him in the cell and lock it. He can break out, but he doesn't try. He doesn't shake at the bars or slam at the door.

He curls up, shaking with sobs, and sits in the corner of the cell.

Tommy and Phil exchange a look and a silent conversation. Phil stays by the door as Tommy runs off to check on his brother.

-

Tubbo can't breathe. He can, he's not suffocating, but it really feels like he can't. His entire body is quivering. his fists are balled tight, his heart is racing, every muscle in his body is tense.

"Breathe, kiddo."

Phil's voice cuts through the noise in his head. The roaring static and incoherent screams.

"It's ok. In and out."

He tries. Trying is the best he can do. But he tries.

-

"We can't keep him here."

Tommy's voice is soft. "Wilbur-"

"Don't even try. You saw the same thing I did."

"He's been here for ages and he hasn't tried that before, surely-"

"I'm done wasting our resources on a traitor, Tommy. I don't care if he's your best friend, I don't care if he's your brother. He's a threat."

-

Tubbo assumes the worst. Death, dismemberment, being abandoned in a ten foot hole in the desert on the coldest night of the year.

What he gets instead is a visit.

Techno sits cross-legged on the other side of the bars. His neck is a masterpiece of yellows and blues and blacks and purples. Swelling that makes it hard to breathe and bruising that makes it hard to move.

He tears a small loaf in half and opens a jar of homemade sweetberry jam.

Tubbo is hesitant. It's clear Techno's struggling to chew and to swallow, but he fights through.

The younger shuffles closer and takes his half.

"You alright?" Techno's voice is raspy, barely a whisper. It hurts him to talk.

Tubbo gives a tiny nod. "You?"

He gets a nod in response.

The silence isn't tense, but it's not relaxed. It's just there as they eat. Still. A breath on the lips ready to be drawn. The tension on a bowstring before the arrow is even cocked.

They finish slowly. Techno gives him the crusts that are crunchy and hard to chew.

He also breaks the quiet.

"Why?"

His voice catches. ".. I didn't mean to."

Techno gives a little nod, taking the jam and plate, and standing. He leaves a lot of things unsaid in the absence he gives. If forgiveness is one of them, Tubbo doesn't notice.

-

"Why?" Tommy asks later that day, sat with their backs together just like before. Tubbo starts crying. 

"Why?" Wilbur asks, his face with nothing but anger, but softness. This is still his brother, and from what the others told him, he clearly didn't mean it.

"I'm sorry," Tubbo whispered without meeting his eyes.

-

It's been three days. It's a quiet one. Only Techno is in the ravine still - recovering.

Companionable silence is the best way to put it.

He opens the door.

Tubbo frowns, glancing him over, but Techno just gestures with his head to follow.

They stand in the same place as before. Techno throws him what could only be defined as a staff.

".. What?"

He huffs, stepping closer and pushing Tubbo's hands into the right position, then steps back again.

"Are you sure? I mean.."

Techno simply nods, readying himself. Tubbo takes a small breath and nods back.

They clash - the iconic smack of wood on wood as they go.

Not a word is said, but somehow with just gestures and nudges, Techno pushes him towards the correct techniques. He demonstrates something, then throws an attack which gives Tubbo the perfect opportunity to try it. He's never fought with a staff before, but he's picking it up quickly.

"Nice job," Phil comments softly, revealing himself from where he had been watching.

Techno looks up with a smile. He gives a little, questioning hum and holds the staff out.

"Nah. you're doing good." Phil sits himself upon on a boulder, out of the way but close to watch. "That's what I usually fight with," He explains with a slight chuckle. "The one weapon I still have a slim chance of beating him with."

He coaches a bit from where he watches - spouting the occasional tip or reminder of positioning.

After several attempts from Techno to get him to take the staff, he gives in. He hops down to take over and twirls it over as Techno rests.

"Show me what you've learnt," he grins.

Phil wins easily, but Tubbo's learned a lot in such a small amount of time. The three catch their breath against the wall of the ravine, laughing (or, in Techno's case, coughing and wheezing) at a joke Phil cracked.

"Why are you still here?" The dad asks after a while.

Tubbo blinks. "Huh?"

"You can unlock your own cell. You know the route out to the surface. And from there, I'm sure you could find Manberg. Even if we tried to stop you, you could get past. Why don't you?"

He opens his mouth, but fails to make words. Eventually, he stammers, "Stockholm syndrome?"

Techno absolutely loses it to the point that Phil has to force him to calm before he suffocates.

-

Tubbo's found himself referring to the cell as his room. Each of the others have their own rooms, and so he does too, right? The only difference is that his can be peered into from any angle.

Wilbur approaches.

Tubbo expects beration or questioning, but all he gets at first is a huff.

"I noticed the staffs had been moved." Before Tubbo can speak, he shrugs, "I'm not mad."

He frowns, watching as Wil sits himself on the chair next to his cell. The man takes a very long, steadying breath.

"I don't care if you believe that we're your family. I don't care if that even matters to you. Whether it was Schlatt or not, someone over there did something to you." He shook, pointing off as if laying blame, his body shaking. "I'm going to find out who, and I'm going to make them pay."

His voice cracks on the last word, making him inhale and look away.

Tubbo frowns, watching silently. He can't help but feel like he's seeing something he shouldn't. He wouldn't get an opportunity to figure it out, as Wilbur huffs in frustration and storms away.

-

Phil's words can't leave his mind.

Tubbo struggles to sleep. They keep ringing and twisting and repeating over and over.

Why are you still here?

-

Techno is shaken awake by a very wide-eyed Tommy.

They search every inch of the ravines, calling his name. They search the forest above but find no footprints.

"Guys, stop." Wilbur calls. They've wasted half of the day. "He's gone back."

-

Tubbo gets too far into the land before someone sees him. The defences are bare, unguarded. They've always been understaffed.

He's both guided and helped home.

The doors are thrown open and emperor Schlatt sprints out. He has bags under his eyes, his hair mildly unkempt.

"Tubbo," he whispers, grabbing the boy by the shoulders. "Tubbo, oh my fucking god.."

Tubbo knows what Schlatt likes and doesn't. He knows what he shouldn't do. He knows Schlatt isn't the biggest fan of hugs.

He lunges forwards and buries himself into one anyway.

And for once, Schlatt doesn't push him away.

"It's ok! It's ok. I've gotya. let's- let's get you some food, eh? And we can talk."

He nods and lets himself be pulled along.

Schlatt never asks many questions. He has a talent of getting what he needs from very few. He comforts Tubbo in his usual way - rubbing his back, hand on his shoulder, small 'mhms' as he talks.

He doesn't know why, but Tubbo decides to make out that he doesn't know where. That he escaped in the middle of the night, that he was kept in a cell and didn't know anything.

"Of course those barbarians kept you in a cage," Schlatt would answer. "Of course they treated you like garbage." "Of course the traitors did." "Of course those savages didn't."

Tubbo eats. He accepts the medicine, the bandages, the warm bed, the comforts of civilization.

But he leaves before dawn.

-

The mood in Pogtopia is sour. Bitter, sad, low - they miss him. They wonder why he left.

Their thoughts are interrupted.

They instantly tense for attack, scrambling for weapons and bows and armour as they hear someone upstairs. He's told them, he's lead them back here, he's-!

Tubbo reaches the bottom of the steps in a very powerful armour that lived in his room at home.

He throws his sword on the rocky ground.

He drops a bag filled with potion ingredients he stole from the alchemists and food that he stole from the kitchens.

He takes off the armour piece by piece as they watch in confusion and caution. He throws each one atop the sword, too.

Silence deafens the air as all five stand in silence.

Tubbo makes direct eye contact with Wilbur.

"Fundy's stationed in the upper area by the towers."

The stunned expression on the man's face fills him with both anger at the distrust and stubborn gloating.

Tubbo stands for just a second. the relief on Schlatt's face when he came home will break his heart until he returns again. He did it on purpose this time and when he finds out...

He blinks the thought out of his head and turns away without another word.

-

The border is a lonely place. with Manberg constantly expanding into the wilderness, it was hard to tell quite where it is. He follows it to the north, treading the path between the two. Balancing. He can't be in both, can he? He has to choose. One foot in each world isn't an option.

It never was.

-

"Tubbo!"

An out of breath voice calls. He's been laying in the grass for a while, now, watching the sky. Thinking.

Schlatt pants as he slows to a stop. He's old, out of breath. Tubbo smiles.

"Where- where did you-?!"

"I just went for a walk."

"Tubbo, it's nearly evening! I've spent the whole day looking for you!"

He looks away again, eyes following a little cloud that drifts past. "Sorry."

There's a pause in which a storm destroys a nation, then Schlatt sighs. "It's ok, Tubbo. come on."

"Yes, Schlatt."

He smiles and takes the boy's hand pulling him up. "Please, you know you don't have to."

"Yes, Emperor."

"Nope," he laughs, keeping a hold of the other as he begins to lead the way back.

"Yes, Dad?"

"I'm- say that again and I will not hesitate to throw you off of the highest tower in Eret's castle."

Anyone else, and they would have been shaking in their own skin, but Tubbo just laughs.

-

A guard is stationed outside his door that night. He hears them pace occasionally, their boots against the wood.

Tubbo sighs, staring upwards at the now unfamiliar ceiling.

Was he doing the right thing?

Did he help?

Did he make things worse?

The bed was like a cloud in comparison to the other but somehow it felt uncomfortable. He ignored it, pulling the blanket up and snuggling down. everything would be fine. It had to be.

-

"Morning, kid."

Tubbo blinks away the sleep, lifting his head a little. Schlatt walks in, carrying a tray with breakfast on it.

"Mmph.. Ten minutes."

He laughs, setting it down and sitting on the bed. "You've been asleep for nearly thirteen hours."

Tubbo pauses. ".. Ok, five minutes."

-

"Don't you have meetings?"

Schlatt smiles, sitting on a bench outside a long abandoned house. A great place to watch the sun. "I cancelled 'em."

"Why?"

He looked over in disbelief. "Tubbo, you've been gone for over a month. I'm not about to go off and have some dumb meetings when you're finally back."

He smiled, looking out across the view. Something about this spot felt so familiar. He couldn't help but think of Tommy.

"Tubbo." Schlatt took a breath. "You were there for a long time. They must have talked to you."

Tubbo didn't look over. He already knew what was wanted. "I don't know their plans."

"Not that."

He frowned and looked over.

Schlatt sighed lightly. "What did they tell you? About them?"

"Oh." Silence. Thought, for a good few seconds. "They said they were my brothers."

"... And do you believe them?"

"I don’t know."

"That's ok." He put his hand on Tubbo's back and rubbed small circles, as he usually did. "It's confusing stuff. Real confusing stuff."

He leans into it. "Are they?"

"... It's a very long story."

-

Schlatt hasn't told him the long story yet. Partially because he didn't ask. The day was so long and he was so tired.

Why did he have to pick a side?

Dream was allowed to be neutral, wasn't he? Why can't Tubbo be, too? A bystander who doesn't help or hinder either side.

He sighs softly. This is the first bath he's had since he left. Hell, the first real wash. He was taking it in. Letting himself relax.

It might not be the height of luxury, but his home was a lot compared to the ravine. He couldn't help but feel a pang of pity, however.

Wilbur lived in what used to be the van, and now he lived in a cave. Did he ever live somewhere in the middle, or was he forced from squalor to squalor?

Was Tommy?

And Techno, their brother, only arrived in time to farm potatoes and train down there. Had they never experienced this in this world? In others, even?

Tubbo found himself pausing.

They must really, really care, to do that willingly.

-

"Where's your armour, Tubbo?"

He's sat on his bed being fussed over. He's an adult, he can look after himself.

"I don't know. Why?"

Schlatt frowns. “Well, I didn't move it."

Tubbo just shrugs.

"It's _netherite_ , Tubbo. The rarest material on this planet! What do you mean you 'don't know'?!" His voice is rising.

"I don't know, Schlatt. If it's not there then I don't know where it is."

He can see the anger in the Emperor's face. Anyone else, and he would have exploded. Anyone else, and he'd be a semi-human ball of rage.

But he takes a breath.

"I'm sure it's somewhere. I'll tell people to have a look. Maybe it got taken down for repairs or something."

Tubbo shrugged. "Maybe."

-

"I'm worried about you."

Tubbo blinks and looks up. He's getting into his suit, ready for his first meeting back. "Huh?"

"You're.. A lot quieter, honestly. It’s worrying."

".. Oh."

Schlatt just looks at him for a moment, then puts a comforting hand on his shoulder. As usual; as always. "I’ll meet ya there."

-

Tubbo forgot how uncomfortable and stiff suits were.

Schlatt's right hand man. To Schlatt's left, Quackity. He winked playfully at Tubbo in the same way Techno did. Tubbo looked away.

"The upperside of the territory," The soldier reported. "Five people are injured and three are reported missing so far."

Schlatt nodded, but before he could speak, she said one last thing:

"Fundy is among the missing, sir."

Another, slower, more thoughtful nod. "I see."

The Emperor's eyes trained on the reports on the table. He looked tired. The first hints of grey hairs were swept back with the rest. But he signed up for this, and he was ready for this.

"Small search party around the area. Look for any kind of tracks or any route that could have been taken. If it's Wilbur, chances are Fundy's safe."

-

Bees aren't worried about politics or loyalty. They return to their queen no matter what. They protect their hive with their life. They bumble around sitting on flowers all day.

Tubbo wishes he were a bee.

The little bug shifts on the petal as Schlatt approaches.

"Tubbo."

"Yes, Schlatt?"

He pauses for a beat. "Did you tell them where Fundy was?"

He reaches a finger out to the bee and stays silent as it clambers on, happy as anything. It had no idea what was going on all around.

Schlatt knows what the silence means.

He looks down.

With the tiniest of sighs, he takes off the suit jacket, undoes his top button, and settles on to the grass. The late afternoon breeze pushes his hair out of its neatly combed state.

"Are you ready to hear a story?"

".. Is it a long one?"

"Yes." Schlatt watches the bee, too. "It is."

-

Tubbo is told most of a story.

Schlatt reaches the election, the day the polls are announced. He likes this story, but it's never been told in the context of everything else. In the context of Tubbo running on a party against him. In the context of it being blood family.

But Schlatt breaks off in the slowly oranging light. Tubbo looks up.

A figure stands in the wind, his undercoat turned the same brown as his cape by the dying light. Tubbo knows tales.

“Schlatt."

"Dream."

They're silent for several seconds. They can't see his face due to the mask, but Schlatt still picks up on the unspoken words.

"Tubbo stays."

"If you're sure." He huffs. "Your border with me got attacked and your men are patrolling into our land. Care to explain?"

"Well, if it's your border, then surely you attacked."

"We did not."

"Then who did?"

"We both know the answer." He pauses, then sighs. "Nobody entered our land or yours to get there. There were only footsteps leaving."

Schlatt narrows his eyes a little, but nods. "Is that all?"

"Call your men back from my land by tomorrow or we will have a fight on our hands."

"I'll get to it as soon as you leave."

Stony quiet surrounds them. Neither say another word. Dream turns on the ball of his foot and leaves, disappearing into the foliage nearby and seemingly vanishing.

Schlatt huffs angrily and pushes himself up. "Goddamn masked a-hole."

Tubbo's quiet. He wants to hear the rest of the story, he really does, but Schlatt's so busy...

He just watches with a smile as the man apologises and runs off back to the white house.

Tubbo goes back to his bees.

-

Patrols are called back to Manberg, but they are increased on Dream's side. Watching Schlatt. waiting for a reason to attack. Dream isn't one to be unreasonable, but he's always been a neutral fan of war. Especially winning.

Schlatt paces in his office with Quackity opposite. Tubbo sits in a chair off to one side, knees to his chest and leaning on them to doodle. He'd usually be sent away - these things were highly confidential, after all - but Schlatt honestly couldn't bring himself to. He needed to keep an eye on the boy.

-

"Ready?" Is asked in a low voice, sword glinting in the midnight moon.

A nod. "Dawn."

"See you there."

-

Tubbo struggles to sleep. He has since he got back. The walls feel enclosed, somehow, and the amount of time he spends under the sun hurts his eyes even once in darkness again.

But chaos awakens him. Yelling down the corridor, people sprinting, hurried tones and hushed voices combined into a cacophony of panic.

He sprints and yanks open his door, still in his pyjamas. Some guards are wearing theirs under their armour.

He tries to ask, but they're all too panicked. That is until Schlatt runs down the hall, too.

"Tubbo!"

He skids a little, crashing into the doorframe and grabbing the younger by the shoulders.

"Schlatt? What's- what's going on?!"

The emperor breathes, calming himself for a moment to allow himself to talk. "Tubbo, they're-..." He swallows. "They're here."

Tubbo's breath catches. He stares back at Schlatt. They're here. They're _here_.

"I- wh-"

Schlatt smiles. It's fake, but he's trying to comfort Tubbo. "You- you don't have to fight."

Tubbo feels a lump in his throat. He wants to scream, he wants to cry and hide and run.

"You don't have to fight, kiddo. Just- just stay here. No matter what happens, you'll be ok. They love you and I-" Schlatt stops himself. "You know you'll be safe here."

He feels like a coward, but he nods. He nods and Schlatt smiles. The leader pulls away, giving the boy one last little smile before turning and running to join the front line.

Tubbo just steps back, watching them go.

He's a coward. He trained to fight - he's the best in their nation - and now the day's come he.. He's staying in his room. Like a coward. Like a child. But he can't move. He's scared. He doesn't want to hurt either of them.

-

The battlefield is chaos. It's hard to tell who's on which side.

Schlatt stands in front of his enemy, sword shaking in his hand. He's not a fighter, he's a last resort. He's a last resort who everyone else is supposed to protect. But they need their last resort, and he's tired of hiding in the back.

And as they push, as he thinks it can't get worse, a battalion appears over the hill behind him and his troops.

Some are relieved, but Schlatt knows. He knows that face.

He put Fundy on the border far, far from the capital for this exact reason. But here he is, leading a rebel army. Those fox eyes glint as they make contact. The fox and the goat. Enemies on instinct, allies by force.

-

"Wil!" Tommy skids a little in the mud, "Wilbur!"

He growls, shoving away a soldier and knocking them out with a thwack around the head. He doesn't want to kill anyone. "What, Tommy?!"

"Do you have flint?"

He pauses, frowning at him for several seconds. "What?"

"Do you have flint?"

"Uh- uh, yeah.." He rummages for a moment. He brought some along just in case, but didn't expect it to be needed. "Why?"

Tommy snatches it with a grin and goes to run off. "Me and Fundy are gonna blow up the white house!"

-

Schlatt is cut out of his shock, quite literally. Niki fires a crossbow bolt that slices his cheek. He takes a small step back, instinctively hiding within the crowd, but it's too late. The rebellion are immediately charging down the hill to join the fray.

He tries to back up, to grab an abandoned shield from the floor to protect himself and whoever's nearby.

A weight hits him.

Wilbur's face, grinning, vengeant.

"Wilbur," he growls, shifting to hold his sword with both hand.

"Bastard," he grins in response.

They launch at each other, blades clashing and bodies bouncing off of each other with punches and kicks.

The others around continued their battles, but the two could feel the attention. They could feel people step out of the way to let them fight alone.

Wilbur blinked through the blood running down his face and sprinted at his enemy. Both could hardly feel their own bodies anymore

Their swords met and they were face to face. pushing against each other, at this point battling for pure supremacy as if they were training together. Foreheads almost touching.

Wilbur grins as he slowly manages to break Schlatt's grip.

"Say goodbye to your precious home."

Schlatt freezes.

This goes from defence to desperation.

Schlatt swings himself around and slams his fist into the side of Wilbur's head. The man stumbles, grip loosening for a moment, giving Schlatt the opportunity to shove him away.

Wilbur growls, stumbling back upright.

"What? Upset you're gonna lose your precious house?"

Schlatt shakes his head, trying to find his breath and his words.

Finally, he manages to say,

"Tubbo."

Wilbur freezes, staring at Schlatt for several seconds. "... Tubbo?"

"Tubbo- Tubbo, he-" he growls in frustration and just takes off, sprinting through the battle and shoving people aside. Wilbur doesn't even hesitate. He takes off after him, eyes wide, panicked. Panicked.

-

Tommy is startled at the sight of Schlatt running straight towards him. He raises his sword, going to attack, but then he sees Wilbur sprinting too with a mirrored expression of nothing but fear.

"What- what's-"

Wilbur struggles to talk through his pants. "Tubbo-"

Boom.

The three are flattened by the blast, thrown to the ground and smacked with heat and flames from it.

Schlatt struggles up first.

He lifts his head, his entire body shaking. If this were a film, the blaze would be reflected in his wide, terrified eyes.

-

Everything is numb.

Someone says his name.

Schlatt yells for Eret so desperately that his voice breaks.

He sees a face above him. He can't make out anything but shapes and the most distant of mumbles.

-

They're sat in silence. There are guards. Schlatt just sits at the table with the rebels watching.

Tommy is in shock. He's curled into Phil's side, breathing heavily, staring into the void.

"It's ok," His father whispers, rubbing his back.

Wilbur is leant on the table, chin resting on his hands, thinking silently.

Schlatt takes a breath. "So-"

"He's gone," Wilbur murmurs.

"He's not gone."

"He died, I was there." He sits back in his seat. "Tubbo's dead."

The words make Fundy stare away.

"Tubbo isn't dead," Schlatt repeats.

"I literally held him as-"

"He's. Not. Dead."

Stony silence surrounds them. Wilbur takes a small breath through gritted teeth. He looks on the verge of punching the Emperor's lights out. "I know you're upset, Schlatt, but-"

He slams the table and pushes himself up. He doesn't have to listen. He's closer to a crackling ball of rage and energy than a person. He stands there for several seconds as everyone waits for him to say something.

"... I need to go."

-

Schlatt leaves. Wilbur goes to follow. One guard raises a sword, but he doesn't even react. He just walks past.

"Schlatt.."

He swallows and just keeps walking. "What do you want, Wilbur?"

"I know you're upset but you really need to think. He's gone."

He spins. it's terrifying for just a moment - his teeth gritted, his eyes nothing but anger. "THIS IS YOUR FAULT, WILBUR. IT'S YOU WHO DID THIS TO HIM."

He steps backwards, holding his breath. It could be so easy to shift the blame to Tubbo and Fundy. It was their idea, after all. He sighs. ".. I know."

Schlatt snarls and turns again. He continues to storm off.

He shakes as he tries to follow. "Schlatt, we really should talk-"

"I don't want to talk to you."

"Schlatt-"

He cuts off as Eret comes around the corner. He looks tired, bags visible under his sunglasses. The man hesitates for just a second, looking at Wilbur in surprise.

".. Eret," The goat prompts softly.

"Yes. Yes, uh-" He gestures to follow. "Come on."

Schlatt takes a long breath to keep himself calm. He follows Eret.

Wilbur pauses at the top of the stairs, staring down after them. They're heading underground at this point. He expects to be left behind, but Schlatt stops a few steps down and looks back. He just nods for him to follow.

He trots down after them to catch up. There's a guard down here, too. It's the last place he expects to see one. Down here just seems... Like a storage room.

"It was the same risk as before," Eret explains softly.

"I know," Schlatt murmurs. "You told me."

"I know, I know, I just- I need you to be prepared for it, ok?"

Wilbur looks between them both. "What's going on?"

Schlatt looks up to him, hesitance in his eyes. then, eventually, he just says, "In here."

Eret leads them into the next room. Wilbur finds himself blinking in the light.

It's a hospital room.

Tubbo's in the bed. The burn marks look weeks old when they're only a day. And he has older scars, too, ones too severe for Wilbur to even imagine how he got them.

But the thing is that he's breathing. His chest is moving and there's colour in his face and the hair in his face is moving with each exhale.

He slowly turns to Schlatt.

"What's going on here?"

-

Schlatt stands there for a good few seconds. He closes his eyes and takes a breath. He looks ready to pass out.

"I'll tell you later, Wil."

"No." he shakes his head, watching in pure disbelief as Schlatt walks over to the bed. "No! You're going to tell me now!"

"Wil-"

"First he forgets everything, then he has a freak out when Techno mentions a basement, then he dies, and now I come down to probably said basement and I think 'hey, maybe I'll learn what the fuck's been going on!' But no! Now I have even less of a clue!"

"- Wilbur-"

"So I demand to know what's going on! He's- he's-?! What the fuck?!"

Schlatt brushes Tubbo's hair aside with his fingertips. 

"Wil, please..."

His voice is so soft that Wilbur almost doesn't think it's him talking.

"Just.. Sit down. I'll explain everything."

-

"... I wasn't nice to him when you first left. I wasn't really nice to anyone, but.. You know that." A small, sad smile appears on his face. "I’m still not.

"Tubbo wanted to go with you but I didn't let him. I got rid of my biggest threats and losing him-.. It'd just be a waste, yaknow? He was a smart kid, strong. I know that's wrong. Well, I do now, at least.

"The capital was experiencing some.. Structural instabilities. There are lots of caves and bunkers underneath it. There was one that he and Fundy were just terrified of. A long corridor with a black box at the end and a button."

"The final room," Wilbur murmurs.

Schlatt nods. "But we were short staffed. So Tubbo went down there on his own. He was so brave.

"... It collapsed. On top of him. The ceiling, I mean. It took hours to dig him out and by the time we did, he-... He was still warm. He held on for so long only for us to be a minute late."

He takes a shaking breath. Wilbur doesn't think he's ever seen Schlatt so.. Vulnerable. Upset.

"Eret said he had something he could try, but we had to be fast. I didn't realise I even cared about the damn kid until I was running to the castle with his severed leg and an apple."

"Apple?"

"Enchanted one. The golden kind. Very rare, very powerful. Nearly impossible to make but I've.. Let's just say I have a talent for it." He lifted his head to the bottle hanging next to the bed. “The juice of the apple, dragon's breath... Some other stuff I can't remember. And he came back. But.."

Wilbur nodded solemnly. He already figured what Schlatt was going to say.

"He forgot everything," They sighed in unison.

Schlatt reached out and very gently took Tubbo's hand, squeezing it. "He remembers.. Hints. Concepts rather than clear-cut memories. Like how you know broccoli tastes bad but you don't remember when you found out broccoli tastes bad?"

"... I think it tastes ok."

He chuckled very lightly. "This is why we fought, Wil."

Wilbur smiles lightly at the joke, but his face falls again quickly as he looks back to his little brother.

Schlatt voices his exact thoughts.

"He didn't deserve any of this."

"No," Wilbur agrees, his voice quiet, his tone solemn. "None of them did."

-

Wilbur tells the story to the rest upstairs. Niki didn't know anything happened to Tubbo at all, and all Fundy knew is that he was rumoured to be dead then showed up a month later without a single memory.

The first thing Tommy does is ask to see him, but the answer is no.

You see, even if he remembers, Tommy is still a stranger. Not just that, but what'd it do to Tommy to be met with an unfamiliar glare once more?

No. They wait. They're heavily guarded guests here, for now. Schlatt confirms so himself. So no revolution. No war. Just uneasy peace.

-

Schlatt falls asleep in the chair next to the sleeping Tubbo. Their hands stay together. Eret considers waking him when he comes to check up on everything.

He doesn't.

They both need the rest.

Everyone does.

-

"I'm not leaving him, Wilbur."

"I know."

-

Tubbo takes days to stir.

It's not consciousness. It's not awake. But it's the movement of his own body by his own will.

Schlatt nearly cries.

Nearly. 

-

Schlatt tells Wil the story behind every one of Tubbo's scars. The gash down his arm from a particularly grumpy chicken, the thick, raised line around his thigh where his leg had been cut off by the falling rock and sewn hastily back on, the thin marks all over from over-excitement in training.

And that's when Wilbur asks.

And Schlatt blinks, dumbfounded.

"He beat Techno? In a fight?!"

Wilbur nods. "Yeah. I assume you trained him well."

"Are you kidding me? If any of us taught him that we wouldn't be so scared of the pig-guy!"

".. Huh."

-

Techno pauses, frowning a little.

"So... He got it from nowhere?"

Wilbur shrugs as he looks out over Manberg. "Apparently."

Both are quiet.

"What was the weird magic thing Eret did, again?"

"I dunno. Golden apple, dragon's breath, Eret mentioned something about glistering melon or blaze powder or something. I'm gonna be honest, I zoned out."

"Normal golden?"

"Enchanted. Seems like Schlatt made it himself."

Technoblade nods slowly, lifting his head to the sky. "Well, normal enchanted g'apples give absorption and regeneration effects which is why I assume Eret wanted them, but they also give resistance which is basically like armour but in liquid form that ya drink. Those shiny melons make healing potions, blaze powder makes strength..."

"... Oh."

"And, if I remember correctly, dragon's breath makes potions of lingering."

Wilbur's jaw drops a little. "... _Oh_."

".. Yeap." He pops the 'p', grimacing awkwardly.

-

Wilbur practically sprinted downstairs to share Techno's theory, and it turned out it was something not even Eret had considered.

All he thought of was what could bring someone back from the dead, not what would happen after. They ran through a list of the ingredients - everything, no matter how small or insignificant - and tried to figure out what, exactly, was going on.

Eret had found the recipe to raise zombies, and he improved upon it. He had no idea.

"I-I didn't know the breath itself would permeate or go into his body or whatever it did-"

This was a thing that would be kept between them. At least for now. They'd discuss at a later date.

-

Tubbo's scream was heard throughout the building.

The bed was thrown aside. He was clutching his head, panicking, shaking from head to foot.

"Hey, shh.. Breathe kiddo.."

"WHERE AM I?!"

"It's ok. It's ok, we're just under Manberg, like before." Schlatt's voice is soft.

He's hyperventilating. He can't breathe, he can't think, he can't- he can't-

"Wh- where- where-"

His brain can't think of other words. He wants to scream, he wants to cry for help, but he's stuck in his panic.

"I know you're scared. Just breathe." Schlatt took a small step closer, hands outstretched with caution. "You're ok. You're gonna be fine."

"I'm not- I don't- g-GET AWAY FROM ME!"

His voice breaks with the terror in it. He flinches back, staring at Schlatt, scared. Scared for his life.

Wilbur comes sprinting into the room, nearly tripping as he does so.

"Tubbo?"

The boy stares for too long. He grips his head tighter, balls fisted around his hair, nearly tugging it out. "No," he whispers. quick, fearful. "No, no, no, no, no..."

-

Wilbur hears it and he runs. He sprints down the stairs, commanding Tommy to stay put when he goes to follow. He knows the kid won't listen.

He hurries downstairs, eyes widening at the scene. Schlatt approaches, half crouched, like he's trying to calm an animal; Tubbo whispering "no" to himself over and over, eyes squeezed shut, breathing fast.

"Tubbo?"

Tommy's voice is a breath.

"I told you to stay upstairs," Wilbur growls, pushing him towards the door a little before turning to help.

-

He doesn't understand. He doesn't know. He can't- he knows these people, he knows this place. Like an instinct. Like a paranoia.

"Please, no, please.."

Their voices are like echoes. Their words like knives in his ears. It's too much, he can't do this.

"Please- please-"

The man says something. He's inches away. Tubbo wants to respond but he can't.

He puts his hand on Tubbo's shoulder.

With no warning but a breath, he grabs the man's wrist and flips him over, slamming him into the floor on Tubbo's other side. He's nearly knocked out with the force against the hard floor.

"No- nononono- please- please-"

The other keeps his distance, but he's still trying. He's still talking. It hurts. He doesn't know why. the boy behind him is staring. Stop staring. stop looking at me. Go away, go away, stop it stop it stop it "STOP IT."

He grabs his head again and falls to his knees. He doesn't know, he doesn't think, he doesn't feel his own body shaking and shaking and shaking.

"Please- please, no..."

-

"I'm- I'm gonna touch you, ok?" Schlatt talks softly, reaching forwards slowly as to give Tubbo the opportunity to pull away. "I'm just putting my hand on your-"

He's grabbed and thrown across the room, slammed into the floor. The world goes black for a few seconds on impact. Every sense is numb - he can tell his head hurts but he can't actually feel the pain.

"Tubbo?" He whispers, though he's not sure if he actually talks or not. 

-

Tommy glances to Wilbur, then back to his brother. He doesn't know what's happening.

"Has- has he forgotten us?"

"Quiet, tommy."

"I'm trying to help!"

"Quiet! I think sounds are bothering him!"

-

Techno is, and ultimately would always be, a fighter.

And a part of fighting is knowing how and when to scavenge. And, most importantly, where.

He's slipped off and done some searching around. He's not going to deny it. If this breaks into a fight, he wants to be prepared. And when he hears the scream, that's the first thing that pops to mind: a fight.

He and Phil meet in the corridor. By the glance they give each other, they're thinking the same thing.

The stairs are blocked by Tommy, but Techno knows what to do. He puts a hand on his brother's arm and slips past. Wilbur's trying to calm Tubbo, and Schlatt is to one side laying in a pool of blood that's slowly seeping from his head.

Well, shit.

He knew what he had to do.

He pulls a little thing he stole out of his pocket and takes a big bite. Phil goes to say something, but he just shoves the rest into his father's hand and runs forwards.

"Techno-!" Wilbur calls, but he can't stop his brother.

-

Tubbo feels the weight on him immediately. He can't see for the fabric his face is pressed against, he can't move for the arms wrapped around him.

He feels his panic rise. He can't move, he can't fight, he can't-

The hand rubs his back a little. He's being held so tightly and so close that he gets the flashes in his head of the black room. The rock above crumbling. The smack of it against him. The memory scares him, but his body isn't scared. Not anymore.

-

Technoblade doesn't say a word. He hums a soft melody, so soft only really Tubbo can hear. The strength gifted from the apple is the only reason that Tubbo can't escape his grip.

But Tubbo's slowing. He's letting himself be pulled in, his breathing's slowing. Both the lack of input to his eyes and the pressure input to his body is calming him.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry.."

"It's ok," Techno answers simply, letting Tubbo bury himself in the hug.

He looks up and gives a little nod to his family who are stood watching, wide-eyed. There’s hesitancy.

Phil slowly hands the leftover of the apple to Wilbur and hurries forwards to Schlatt.

"Get help," He says to his boys, who both run off up the stairs.

-

Tubbo isn't exactly conscious.

Techno manages to calm him and get him to the bed that someone kindly uprighted. He's curled up on his side in a foetal position. He's awake, eyes staring straight forwards like he's in a trance. He's just in shock. He's trying so desperately to piece together the scraps in his mind.

It's Eret who comes to Schlatt's aid. He helps the man to his feet, but as soon as he tries to lead him out of the room, there's a struggle.

"No- no, no- I'm staying- get-" He tries to pull away but he's too concussed even for that. "Get off of me-! Let go! No.." He trails off as Phil steps forwards to help lead him away. "No- no, please... Tubbo..."

He's treated with a simple potion of healing, but it'll still take several days for him to be perfect again. His skull itself was fractured and one of his horns cracked by the sheer force Tubbo had attacked him with.

It's painful to look at even the bandages. You see, ram horns are quite literally exposed bone with a layer of keratin over the top. Any light injury to them is going to hurt like hell. And it cracked.

He doesn't so much as blink.

He ignores the advice to rest, the instruction to stay in the bed with the monitor.

The second he's alone, he returns to the basement.

Tommy looks up. He's softly talking to his brother, rambling about things that nobody cares for except the boy he knew when they were little.

".. Hey, Tommy."

He receives a huff.

Awkwardly, he sits on the bed. the chair is taken, after all. Not another word between the two is said. Tommy simply continues talking to his unresponsive twin.

The room is quiet. It's nice, to just hear the gentle murmuring of words. Soft and filled with honeysuckle and lemon juice.

Schlatt listens on and off. He doesn't feel as if he's intruding - Tommy's telling a secondhand story about a far off land that everyone's heard many times.

But Schlatt regrets not tuning out the words.

"It’s your fault."

He sighs softly. this was going to come eventually. "You blew up the white house."

Tommy's voice turns to a snarl. "It's your fault he was there in the first place. You made him stay there!"

"I didn't make him, I just told him I wouldn't be upset if he didn't want to fight you-"

"You still made him stay here! When you exiled us! You forced him to stay behind and you- you manipulated him! You killed him the first time!"

Schlatt swallows. "It's easy to throw around blame, Tommy-"

"It's not 'throwing' if it's true!" He stands with his frustration, making the chair scrape against the floor. "You did this to him. You hurt him and you- you ruined our lives! You ruined his life! You ruined everything!"

Schlatt stands slowly. It's not the best move, but hindsight is 20/20.

"Tommy, I know you're upset, but right now we need to think about-"

"ABOUT WHAT? HOW I LOST MY BROTHER SEVERAL TIMES?"

His lip curls a little. He tries, he really does, but it slips out before he can stop it. "AND I DIDN'T LOSE MY SON, TOO?"

Tommy launches, throwing him to the ground. The two wrestle - a fight made of pure anger and desperation. But Tommy has the upper hand. Not only in the fight, but in his thinking. He's spent years training to fight with instinct even through anger. He throws a punch, breaking Schlatt's nose immediately.

"Tommy-"

Another punch. there's blood everywhere.

" _Tommy-_ "

This voice isn't Schlatt's. He doesn't care.

"TOMMY-"

His fist hits his cheek and slips. His knuckles go straight through Schlatt's horn, tearing through the weak part and smashing it away from his head.

He's grabbed and pulled away. He doesn't care who. He yells insults after the Emperor, the man who's scrambling away and in so, so much pain he can hardly breathe.

Phil drags his son away, barely managing to hold him. He's practically shoved into the room where he sleeps as Phil pants for air.

Schlatt’s blacking out. Again. There's blood everywhere, there's pain in the side of his head that he can't place properly. He logically knows Phil's getting help. But he doesn't care.

The half of his horn is abandoned on the floor as he staggers towards the bed and nearly collapses against it. He's on his knees, gripping on to the mattress to stay upright, staring straight at Tubbo.

The boy's eyes move to make contact.

He frowns lightly.

"Schlatt?"

The man sobs.

He sobs and he brushes the young man's hair aside. He can't tell why he's crying - pain? Happiness? Overwhelmed? ... Does it matter?

"Yeah." His voice shakes no matter how hard he tries. "Yeah, that's me, bud."

Tubbo reaches out a hand. "You're hurt."

"I'm ok."

"But- but there's blood-?"

Schlatt takes his hand and pulls it away from his face, holding it in both of his own. "I'm ok, Tubbo."

Tubbo gives a very little nod. He looks so confused. So scared. "I don't.. I remember.."

"It's alright. It's slowly coming back to ya, right? You remembered my name."

Tubbo nods again. Schlatt can feel the blackness from the blood loss. He can feel the pain catching up to him as the adrenaline dies down.

His voice is soft.

"I might pass out soon, but I promise I'm ok. Your pa's gone to get help. I'll be completely fine."

"'Pa'?"

"Yeah. Phil. He's-.." Schlatt breaks off as he sways. It's hard. The fog in his vision is suffocating.

Tubbo holds his hand tighter. His voice is a whisper.

"I’m scared, dad."

He's barely conscious, but he smiles through the blood and the tears and the pain.

"It's ok, kiddo."

-

Schlatt wakes in a bed. He can hear a faint beeping. His ears ring and his entire head hurts. His shoulders hurt. His body just hurts.

He tries to blink his eyes open but they're so heavy. The light streams in through the crack in his lids and it stings. He groans softly as they adjust and he forces them open.

The beeping gets a little faster.

Schlatt huffs loudly and tears away the wire to shut it up.

But, at the lack of signal, it goes mental.

Someone, thankfully, runs in to check, and promptly turns it off.

"Jesus christ! Shit's loud!"

Eret chuckles softly. "It's got to be. That could have been you dead."

"How the hell can someone die with that shit blasting in their ear?! Jeez.." He lifts a hand to rub his ear, but he pauses.

There's nothing there.

Schlatt lifts his hand, as if searching, only to wince as his fingers brush the bandage over the cracked stump.

".. Oh."

Eret looks down. He pulls over a small, wheeled table with a tray on it. There the horn sits. broken. "We really tried to reattach it."

The man is dead silent.

-

Tubbo sits on the edge of his bed. He's slowly putting the bits and pieces together. It's hard. there are some things that feel like they should be earlier, but he and.. Tommy? Are too tall, too old.

"Hey, Tubbo."

He knows that voice. He can put a face to it without needing to check.

"Hey, Tommy."

They sit quietly for a while. thinking. Companionable.

"You're my brother," He says eventually.

"Yeah," Tommy murmurs, a smile in his voice. "We're twins."

".. So are the other two."

"Wilbur and Techno."

"That's it."

Their shoulders press together a little as they lean against each other.

"You like music discs."

"Yeah."

"I like... Machines. And cute insects."

"Yeah."

"... Bees."

Tommy closes his eyes a little. "Bees."

-

Schlatt isn't allowed to leave the room this time. There's literally a guard just outside to make sure.

But the reason he would leave comes to him.

Phil leads the boy upstairs. He doesn't tell Schlatt beforehand, but part of him knows he doesn't have to.

He lifts his head at the knock. "Hello?"

Phil pushes the door open. "Hey, Schlatt. I, uh.. I have a visitor."

He frowns a little, but even he can't stop his face from lighting up as he sees who's there.

"Tubbo."

He smiles, stepping inside awkwardly. Schlatt would have leapt up if he could. Instead, he would have to settle for sitting up just a little. Severe blood loss isn't fun.

"Hey, kid."

Tubbo smiles, sitting on the chair and scooting it closer. "How are you?"

"Kinda lopsided," He jokes softly. "What about you? You feeling alright?"

"Better," he smiles. "Like you said. Things are coming back."

"Good. That's really, really good."

Tubbo nods a little, taking Schlatt’s hand and squeezing it, just as Schlatt had done for him before. very, very softly, he asks, "Did I hurt you?"

He sighs gently. "Just a little. You made me bump my head, but it's ok. I hurt you, too."

"Did I do.. _That_?"

"No, nonono. This wasn't you."

"So we're even?"

He smiles. "Sure."

Tubbo is hesitant. he sits there in silence. Schlatt doesn't mind. Tubbo's ok. He's alive, and he's going to be fine. Who cares what happens to an old buck?

"I'm really sorry for making you worry, Dad."

His inflating happiness turns to one of pity. He can see the expression in the doorway in his peripheral vision.

Schlatt gives a gentle smile and squeezes Tubbo's hand.

"I'm not your dad, kiddo." He nods a little in the general direction. "He is, ok?"

The young man frowns, lifting his head to Phil, then back to Schlatt. "But..."

"I know it's confusing. It's gonna be for a while. But he's your Pops."

Silence stretches.

"Ok, Schlatt."

The man smiles comfortingly and nods.

-

Tubbo sits on the bed.

It's a bad moment.

He keeps getting flashes of fire. Bangs in the back of his mind. He tries to shake them off but they keep coming back.

A gentle knock at the door.

He looks up.

"Hey," Phil murmurs, slipping in. He sits on the bed and Tubbo leans against him. "I just.. Wanted to have a chat."

"Are you mad at me?"

"No."

He sighs, putting his arm around his boy. He holds his son close. His son, his boy, his child, and he says, "Tubbo, only you can decide who your Dad is."

He blinks. He lifts his head.

"I'm your biological father, yes, but your happiness is always the most important thing to me." He brushes Tubbo's hair away and gently cups his face. He's grown so big. He's so proud of his son. "Maybe we can both be your dads."

Tubbo looks away with a frown. "You're getting married?"

-

Walking is surprisingly difficult. Horns are pretty weighty things, and the change of such a thing is 'goddamn weird', to put it in Schlatt's terms.

But, through his fading concussion and heartbreak, it's just another thing on the list. At least he can get around.

Knock.

He's glad he's sitting. "Yes?"

Tubbo pushes open the door. Schlatt smiles.

"Hey, bud."

"Hey, Dad."

He sighs a little, a smile not leaving his face. "I told you, Phil-"

"Phil said I decided on my own dad."

Schlatt raised an eyebrow a little. "Did he now?"

Tubbo gave a little nod. He looked so nervous about it.

But what was he to do? This isn't his son. This is a boy he kidnapped and brainwashed. This is a boy he manipulated into loving him that's hanging around still now, this-

His mind races through all these untruths he tells himself.

Tubbo just sits next to him, breaking the cycle with an arm around the shoulders.

"Yeah. He did."

-

"Wilbur."

"Schlatt."

They extend their hands to each other and shake. Then Wilbur tugs and pulls his enemy into a hug. Schlatt isn't a fan of hugs. He's only allowed it twice - once when Tubbo came home, and once when the same boy insisted on calling him 'dad'.

A third time wouldn't hurt.

They pull away after a couple of seconds, smiling at each other like old friends.

"It'll be fun to lose to you," He jokes.

Wilbur chuckles softly. "Then it's a shame you won't be."

Schlatt blinks. "Huh?"

"I think we need to work together. We both have very different ideas and ideals, and together, I think we'll finally be able to do what's best."

The man pauses, then nods. "That sounds good to me." He looks up to Fundy and Nikki, who are plotting together quietly with a few members of their rebel army.

"What about them?"

"Next time," Wilbur looks down. "I’m not making the mistake of shoving a child into power like I did with Tommy."

"You're making the right choice."

"I hope so."

-

It's agreed that Schlatt will be the vice president. The election and votes themselves are more of a formality than anything else. No children in this cabinet. And no Tommy, either, much to his displeasure.

But he and his brother have time, now. Time to explore the locations of old memories and to hopefully jostle done things.

And here's one. 

Stood in the training grounds, blunt sword tip to blunt sword tip. Memories of this situation twice before, and one so faint it could be an imagination of children running around with sticks.

Techno grins. Tubbo rolls his shoulders with a cocky smirk.

“Good luck," Techno murmurs.

"Don't give it to me,” The boy grins. “You're the one who needs it."

**Author's Note:**

> Edit on 24/11/2020: fixed like 500 typos ;-;


End file.
